Joiner panels are nonstructural partitions used to subdivide areas within a structure such as a building or ship. For example, joiner panels subdivide the area between major structural bulkheads of a ship into smaller public and private cabins, passageways and other spaces. While not part of the ship's primary structure, joiner panels are required to provide some level of structural performance, because items are frequently mounted to their faces. Therefore, the joiner panels must not only be able to statically support the weight of attached hardware, but also must be able to withstand shock loads associated with the attached equipment. Other important characteristics of joiner panels include corrosion resistance, puncture and impact damage resistance associated with routine encounters with people and their equipment, ability to repair or replace damaged sections, rodent proofing, and acceptable flame, smoke and toxicity performance. Weight and installed cost of the joiner panel system are also important parameters.
A conventional joiner panel system has three primary hardware components: a flat panel, a shoe or coaming at the bottom of the panel, and a curtain plate at the top of the panel. The panels are usually fabricated as either sandwich panels, made with two thin fiberglass, aluminum or steel face sheets surfacing a core of foam or honeycomb, or integrally-stiffened panels, usually welded from aluminum or steel.
The shoe or coaming is used to connect the bottom of the panel to the support surface, such as the deck of a ship. The shoe is typically made of two elongated pieces of steel. The upper edge of the larger piece is bent into a Z-section with its upper edge some distance, for example, at least 6 inches, above the support surface. A smaller piece is welded to the side of the Z-section, forming a U-shaped channel along the upper edge of the shoe. The lower end of the joiner panel sits in the U-shaped channel of the shoe. Commonly, the joiner panel is attached to the shoe with occasional fasteners through both sides of the U-shaped channel and the panel. The lower edge of the larger piece of the shoe is sculpted to fit the contours of the supporting surface, such as an out-of-flat deck, and either welded continuously along the length of the shoe or spot welded.
The curtain plate provides the overhead connection for the upper edge of the joiner panel. A downwardly-opening U-shaped channel is formed along the lower edge of the curtain plate. In applications subject to movements, such as on a ship, the upper edge of the joiner panel can slide vertically in the U-shaped channel.
In many situations, the curtain plates must fit closely around numerous pipes, ducts, cable trays, and other hardware that occupies the overhead space. This fitting is currently done by cutting, fitting, and welding individually crafted steel sheets around the hardware to meet the specific closeout requirements, such as light, water, and pressure tightness. This task is labor intensive and costly.